THE election of the Mayor of the Greater Shepparton City Council is set to be a three-way race between re-elected councillors Seema Abdullah, Kim O’Keeffe and Fern Summer at next Monday’s Council Meeting, yet the door remains open for more councillors to nominate.
Unlike the election of councillors, the public does not vote directly for a Mayor and Deputy, and their election will be among the newly-inducted nine councillors. The appointments are more akin to a cricket team voting to choose their captain and vice-captain for a 12-month term.
Likewise, the captain isn’t necessarily who the public perceives as the single best or most popular player, but is ideally the person best suited to leading and acting as a public spokesperson for the team.
Cr Kim O’Keeffe recently surged back into office on the back of a whopping 6,754 first-preference votes (the next best was Cr Rob Priestly with 5,404), however whether this translates into a mandate to be elected Mayor is not guaranteed.
Cr O’Keeffe has served previously as Deputy Mayor for one term and as Mayor for two terms, and said she believes her experience would help lead the new Council through its first year in office.
“I think coming into a new term of Council, it’s important to come in with some experience in that role,” she said.
r O’Keeffe said the public support she had received in being returned to Council – receiving nearly 20 percent of the vote – shows there was support among the community for her to take the top job.
Cr Abdullah, the most-recent Mayor who was appointed this time last year in an 8-1 vote on Council, has also said her re-appointment would bring the stability required to bridge the transition from one group of councillors to the next.
“Having done this job during a very difficult, one-in-a-hundred-year pandemic, I believe I’m able to provide the inclusive and stable environment while the new councillors get their feet under the desk,” she said.
“I’ll be very humbled and very honoured if I’m provided the opportunity to serve a second year as Mayor.”
Cr Fern Summer, who was re-elected for her third term on Council and has two years’ experience as Deputy Mayor, is nominating for the top job for the first time.
“I’d like a more engaged and transparent Council that will hold the chief executive officer to account,” she said.
“I’m sure other candidates would do a fantastic job, but it’s a new Council and we could do with a new start.”
The declaration of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor is expected late on Monday afternoon.
